[IC] Cold Front: Tacitum (Completed)

Score

---

Active: 2/7 (Vinnie, Lucia)
Dead: 2/7 (Leo, Rachel)
Imprisoned: 3/7 (Jane, Reika, Alice)

[ButtsnBalls]

Day 1

---

Jumbo Meatstick is one of the most obscure restaurants in Chiavo. It is a Turkish joint that only opens three hours a day, and three days a week. Its food and prices are alright, though no one would go out of their way for them. Even so, Jumbo Meatstick's dining room is always booked. The average Chiavan is fine with pickup or delivery, but for those with enough insider knowledge, they'll know this old two story location is the Crogiolo Syndicate's prime meeting place.

The owner, a short and bearded Turk known as Uccian Kuso, prepares the lunch today all by himself. He normally has a boy and girl assisting him, supposedly his nephew and niece. They are acquainted with the syndicate, but whenever Federica Azzurro comes over with her entire inner circle, Kuso would give them the whole day off.

The big oak table would normally seats eight guests on such occasions. Today, there is only seven. The typical chatter, both business and otherwise, is absent at this moment. Kuso emerges from the kitchen with a big platter of kebabs. He is wearing one of his many starch white dress shirts underneath his apron, though it is wrinkled rather than the pristine state it had always been. There is a bulge in his pants, its blocky shape probably hints toward a concealed handgun rather than his excitement.

The only sound in the dining room comes from a small TV hanging on the far corner. The headline all day has been Federica Azzurro's arrest. There has apparently been a shootout before that; Federica's driver and bodyguard, Tom Bergman, tried to fight through the police, and was quickly shot dead by SWAT officers. Detectives found numerous incriminating evidence in Federica's mansion. Drugs, forged ledgers, stolen artworks, blackmail materials. The police chief says anonymous tips are to thank for the bust, but the criminal community knows otherwise.

"Enough of that." Kuso declares. He sets the kebab platter on the middle of the table, and shuts off the TV. Drinks (without alcohol, since Federica never drinks before 4pm), salad, pita bread and everything else is already served. Kuso looks at each of the syndicate members, then at the wall behind them, where an antique painting of a medieval saint stands vigil.

"Here you go; enjoy your lunch." Kuso rubs his stubby hands clean on his apron.

He walks over to the windows, making sure the blinds are securely shut. Then Kuso fidgeted with his belt buckle, and the concealed sidearm underneath it. He makes the syndicate members leave their weapons at the front, inside their own secure containers. Still, he is debating whether or not he should say something about the situation. He's not the person for Crogiolo's secrets, but the seven people here all are.

"Federica trusts you handle this, uh, business." Is what Kuso settles on saying. "I'll be at the front; give me a shout if you need...cleaning up, or anything else."

The Turk leaves with the heavy double door closing behind him, leaving seven people around a dimly lit table.

[Katthaj]

Vinnie Esposito

Vinnie dug into the the kebab infront of him. He was starving he hadnt eaten since the morning when the news broke that Fredrica had been arrested he had been to caught up in re rotating his routes incase the police had information on the normal routes. "So im guessing we all know that it wasnt a so called anonymous tip that caught Fredrica, its probably someone around this table. I dont really have a clue who it could be but we might let you live if you just tell us now." He said while sloppily munching on a kebab stick with a slight accusatory tone in his voice. "Anyways. I have already rotated my routes to private routes that only I and my drivers know I would suggest you do the same with your runs Reika." he said with a helping tone in his voice even though Reika is technically higher in the hierarchy of the Syndicate he has always seen her as a little sister since he and she naturally work together due to her large shipments usually coming through Vinnies vans and trucks and that he was 6 years older than her. He decided to grab a kebab roll and as he took a bite he slouched down on the chair from the complete blizz feeling that he got from eating at Jumbo meatstick

[Zoey Boey]

Reika Saigyo

The area infront of Reika is organized, the japanese racketeer having organized her food for effeciency and cleanliness. Carefully, she bit into a kebab. After a moment of chewing and swallowing, she nodded. "Delicious as always, Kuso," she complimented the chef. Satisfied, she pushed the plate aside and made room for her tea kit, which she always brought to her on these meetings. Tea always helped clear her mind, not to mention she was exceptionally talented at making it. A few finely crafted but minimalist-designed steel implements designed for allowing the drink to be made wherever the user had enough room were placed infront of her, and soon there was a small cup full of the steaming brown beverage. Taking a sip, she glanced over at Vincent as he spoke to her, suggesting she change her routes.

"Thank you, Vincent." She said in japanese to the multilingual man. "I'll keep that in mind." At first, Vinnie had annoyed her. He was unashamedly lower class, had a bizarre sense of humor, and often said asinine things. For example, asking for the traitor to give his or herself up. But he had grown on her, and there was something endearing about the way he carried himself.

The matriarch of the Crogiolo clan has been captured. Grave matters are afoot. Reika hoped to prosper from the coming power struggle, but those matters must be put aside. Before the Crogiolo mafia can crown a new matriarch, a traitor must be found or created. It would be unwise to accuse them without even looking into them. Of course she has done research on all the other council members, as she assumes they have done on her, but clearly they all warrant a second looking at.

Switching back to italian, Reika spoke her peace. "We must all be wary. The traitor is among us. My people will look into all of you. If I do not like what I find, we will all have you killed." Her gaze worked over to Alice, and it turned icy.

"Can someone explain why this impudent child is here? Perhaps she is responsible for Federica's imprisonment by her foolishness alone." Reika never liked Alice. With Federica gone, she was more free to speak her mind with no fear of disappointment.

[Berlin]

---

“Might wanna slow down, Champ. You’ll get sick,” Jane warned, the inside of her eyebrows turned upwards as she watched Vinnie gorge himself from the platter. The young woman was leaned back in her seat, absentmindedly picking at a piece of pita, popping each darkened bubble on its surface, but never bringing any to her mouth. Her eyes had been glued to the television screen just prior to it being shut off, hoping that a newscaster would appear with some breaking news about the situation. Rather, they each spewed the same script accompanied by the same video clips. Those sitting alongside her knew more than anyone at this point.

The daunting, subtle message left by Kuso seemed to settle upon the table as he disappeared through the doors. It was an invitation, almost, and Jane was certain that there were others here willing to RSVP. There had been meetings before that caused her palms to grow damp as she arrived to them, but this was different. There was not a leader to pull them in one direction or another. What happened here would be entirely their responsibility. They had to call the shots now. Literally. Jane scoffed to herself at her own sick humor.

“Better watch your drink if you go pointing fingers like that,” Jane smirked as she referenced Alice’s knack for tainting edibles, shooting a wink to the young woman. Reika’s audacity hadn’t surprised her, but it did quickly alter the mood. They each would be on the defensive now. “I think we could very easily form a case for any of us sitting here. It’s not like any of us can boast a clean RAP sheet. Aggressively pushing and shoving is just gonna cause us to act irrationally and impulsively, though.” Jane brought herself forward, placing her folded arms onto the table. “We need to structure this somehow.”

[Zoey Boey]

Reika Saigyo

Before Alice could respond, Reika's sharp gaze focused on Jane. To suggest anyone dare poison Reika Saigyo was an insult. Sitting up even straighter, Reika began speaking with eloquent arrogance.

"Structure, Ms. Montgomery? Everyone here should do as I say. Ceding control of this investigation over to me would garner swift and effecient results. The traitor would be outed, and the Crogiolo syndicate would be safe in my hands. Federica grew weak and complacent in her waning years- a mistake I am sure not to repeat. If you all could put aside your, how do you say it, grandiose delusions for a few moments, the Crogiolo syndicate's place in this world would be secure. And then some. We can squash this little incident before it begins. Once we find the traitors, I will kill them myself."

Clearing her throat, the woman dressed in blue took another sip of her herbal tea. She meant every word. Chiavo would be hers- and theirs too, if they would all just trust her. As Federica did, and as her father did. Give her a chance to make up for... Before the thought had a chance to manifest, Reika set the teacup back down on the table and clasped her hands together and looked around the room, waiting a brief moment for a response.

[nightmare medx]

Rachel nibbled at a kebab first, then tried the salad, then the bread. Cacik was always a winner.

”She got weak and complacent, huh?” Rachel doesn’t say it out loud, but part of her job on the ambulance (way back when) was to figure out what people weren’t telling her. If Reika thought Federica was becoming weak and complacent, maybe she wanted her out of the way to strengthen it up.

”They do say snitches get stitches, but for the record, I’m going to pass on the stitching this time, whoever you are.” This was not a small mistake. This was life ruining. ”I was going to see if Federica would help me get into actual med school, finally, then I could do an even better job. But you took that off the table, and I’m feeling petty.”

[NorthernKraken]

---

---

Aaand posted!

Alice swiped a manicured nail down her phone screen, exiting out of her insta and the selfie she took at home earlier in her baby pink pyjamas with Snowball sat on her lap, the caption proclaiming how she was all set for a day of TLC with her favourite pooch. The light illuminating her perfectly made up face switched to a cool yellow as Snapchat loaded up and she checked her feed. Nothing interesting. She exited the app, flicked through several more, seemingly oblivious to the conversation going on around her, before, eventually she set the phone down on the table in front of her.

With a raised eyebrow, she surveyed the faces around the table, each wearing expressions of various levels of perturbation. Vinnie was being a pig, as per usual, whilst Reika seemed to be making yet another attempt to prove how big and strong she was. Honestly. Jane seemed to be trying to be reasonable for some reason, and Rachel was being, well, Rachel. And to think these were the people she chose to spend her time with. Really, it was a shame about Frederika, but Alice could think of more important things to be concerned about.

Like Reika’s apparent attempts to get them all found out.

“Really, Reika? You’ll kill them? Need I remind anyone of the mess you left behind after the incident with Vinnie’s last problem client?” she said, taking a sip of her own glass of clear, plain water, the pink gloss from her lips lightly staining the rim as she set it back down, “I know pissing up lamp posts is a particular hobby of yours, but is now really the time to be asserting your dominance?” she batted her eyelashes, giving the woman a sweet smile, “you might make the rest of us think you have something to gain from this, ah, situation.”

[Liv]

Lucia Koundouros

Lucia played with the salad momentarily. She was hungry, but she'd also given up meat recently, nearly a week ago. She had an internal debate whether to make an exception this time. Reaching for the pita bread and taking a bite, it didn't take long for her to realize that what she'd be eating wouldn't be very filling. She gave in to her temptations with a sigh, losing the rather short battle to herself.

"Well, there is a bit of truth to your statement," she finally spoke up after a few bites, motioning towards Jane. "I mean, we need to go about this in an organized fashion. If we slip up, we don't necessarily get a slap on the wrist, you know? Let's be smart about this."

She took another bite of the kebab, losing herself away from the conversation for a second. She was foolish if she thought she could kid herself. She loved meat, and she wouldn't have it any other way. "Instead of arguing, let's come up with a plan. Time's ticking away."

[Red7VII]

"You want to analyze this objectively instead of bickering? How absurd, Lucia," Leo said sarcastically. He gave Reika and Alice each a stern glare. "Jane is right. The only way we're going to come out of this is if we stay organized and rely on empirical evidence." He looked at his food and his face contorted in mild disgust. It was surely delicious as Kuso was a wizard in the kitchen, but he hadn't the slightest appetite right now, given the circumstances.

He propped his elbow up on the arm of his chair and began tapping each of his fingers on his thumb, a fidget that always came up when he was deep in thought. He had his own notions of who the culprit could be, but they were mere assumptions. Reika was a bit bold, voicing her intentions to take over, practically serving her potential motive on a plate to everyone right next to the kebabs. Then again, Reika is Reika. Always one to seize an opportunity.

Vinnie didn't seem bothered much by any of it. Change routes, eat food, business as usual. Whether that was an act to push off suspicion or if he was generally unphased by all of this, who was to say? Rachel claimed to have an investment in Federica being alive, but that, too, could just be cover.

The lack of evidence was frustrating. Not knowing who the rat could be was infuriating. The finger taps became faster the more he thought on it.

"Before any of us dives for the crown, we've got to find out who made the move on the last queen. Otherwise we just risk the same thing happening again to the next in line. Does anyone have any confidence in their suspicions?"

[Katthaj]

Vinnie Esposito

"I wouldn't say I have any confidence in my suspicions but I would like to say that I support Reika in letting her run the investigation into whoever did this, I have seen her men at work and I highly doubt anyone in here can rival their proficiency when it comes to finding the truth." Vinnie said lazily wiping his mouth with a crimson red handkerchief.

He liked Leo he always has, he felt like they both had a kind of aura of expertise, he didn't have the bloodlust of the others he was calm and collected while the others bicker on about non-important things like what turf is whos or what exact time someone should be at a meeting. Leo is someone you can trust leading an organisation and if it came down to a vote on who should lead he would pick him.

"Even though I don't have confidence in my suspicions I am going to vote for Alice. She seems way to snappy today, I'm not sure if its cuz she hasn't drunk any coffee yet or whatever but she's a bit too scared of Reika killing the person who killed Fredrica. My last Problem client has nothing to do with this situation especially since you have no idea what happened you spoiled entitled little brat. " he said almost screaming the last words over the table at Alice.

Vote

Alice

[Zoey Boey]

Reika Saigyo

Reika's eyelid twitched. Insufferable brat, she thought, looking over at Alice. Reika Saigyo didn't leave messes. She left messages. She was about to speak, when Vinnie took the words right out of her mouth.

"This is exactly what I mean, Alice. Foolish girl. Staring at your online circus, telling the world of our meeting no doubt, whether out of malice of stupidity is no matter to me. You're a liability to this entire organization, and I will have you ousted from it even if you are merely incompetent, and not a traitor."

She snapped her gaze over to Lucia and Leo. "Plan. You two want a plan? I gave you a plan. You just want a plan that doesn't involve you losing anything. I am many things, but a liar is not one of them. I have always been honest of my attentions, and to pretend none of us have anything to gain from Federica's imprisonment is naivete. Rachel," she said, looking over at the would-be doctor. "Your visit to medical school is assured, once I am in control. You've always been a useful asset, one worth investing in. And yes, Federica was complacent. Otherwise she would have been found those who conspired against her."

"But regardless. Those matters are for later. Even if Alice is not the traitor she will serve only to hinder this investigation. Besides, the quicker progress we make on eliminating suspects, the better. Vincent and I seem to be in agreement." She took another sip of her tea, let the soothing flavor work it's way through her system. The woman in blue breathed in deep and sat straight-backed in her chair.

[NorthernKraken]

---

---

Unperturbed by Vinnie’s outburst, Alice folded her arms, gaze shifting from coolly indifferent to deadly as Reika spoke. The other woman had always been impulsive, greedy, even. Whilst her hunger for power had before been a minor inconvenience, now it seemed it was putting them all at risk. And she was the liability, apparently.

“Tell me Reika, where exactly do people think you are? Because I just told that circus I’m at home with Snowball. Although I suppose big, bad drug dealers like yourself don’t need alibis.” for the last part, she let her voice turn sickly sweet, as if speaking to a child. It was petty, but she didn’t care. She enjoyed winding Reika up, and even better if she could prove her wrong in the process.

“And honestly, I wouldn’t go boasting about that particular alliance,” her gaze drifted lazily to Vinnie, more particularly, to the spot of red just out of reach of the clean swipe of the napkin, “Although I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised the two thugs at the table banded together.”

She shifted slightly, angling to adress Leo. He was logical. Smart. Realistically, the mole could be any one of them, and he knew it. That didn’t mean Reika wasn’t a danger though, the same for Vinnie, but it seemed the others would take some convincing, “Empirical evidence?” she said, calm, “Reika’s grab for power seems awfully empirical to me, as does Vinnie’s…” she trailed off deliberately, before, with obvious disdain, “Tantrum”

She gave Vinnie a look, “By the way, you missed a spot.”

[Red7VII]

"Evidence is lacking," Leo said, quite frustrated with that point. "I'm not a fan of gambling, but there really isn't much choice here." He met each stare that was pointed his way as he considered all the people around the table. "This one time, and this one time only, I will not be formally issuing blame." Hopefully more evidence will rise to the surface or someone will slip up and accidentally trip over their web of lies. Patience will have to do for now.

[Liv]

Lucia Koundouros

The curly-haired woman, having not said much as she'd had her mouth full of meat for most of the exchange, took a sip of water before putting in her two cents, her gaze falling upon the accused. "I'm not saying you're to blame with any level of certainty, but Alice, I'm not a fan of your level of involvement with social media. Reika is right in that aspect, so call me old-fashioned but a lot of the time, you don't only attract positive attention online." She shrugged her shoulders, gathering some salad with her fork. "Unfortunately, finding the traitor may prove itself to be rather difficult."

[nightmare medx]

Rachel Hayford

"Look, much as this pisses me off, there isn't enough evidence to go after anyone," Rachel says, taking a sip of her drink before waving a hand at Reika. "I don't know if I really want her leading the investigation, but I also want to make sure we don't do anything to anyone innocent." Well, relatively speaking.

Vote

Rachel will abstain.

[ButtsnBalls]

Day 2

---

"Breaking news! Chiavo Police confirmed two arrests this morning. Jane Montgomery, an American-born attorney suspected of working for the Crogiolo Syndicate, was arrested for extortion, money laundering and interfering with police investigation. A restaurant owner known as 'Uccian Kuso' was also taken into custody around the same time, with speculative charges of, get this, cannibalism!"

The news footage first shows surveillance camera recording. Jane is there, outside of an unknown Syndicate member's residence (the details have been censored), sneaking about and sifting through someone's personal belongings. Then, police officers pour into the scene, from seemingly nowhere. The footage cut to Jane being taken into custody in the early morning. Finally, there is a brief clip of Jumbo Meatstick behind cordons.

"Shocking! Well, in other news," the news anchor continues, "contact has been lost with the Antarctic station known as STAB..."

Six syndicate members are at a private flying club on the outskirt of the city. It is almost noon. They are called there by Giulio Cespuglio, the former tourism minister and an ally of Federica. Everyone is at first skeptical of this meeting, but Mr. Cespuglio manages to convince them with another headline; himself coming under investigation.

Giulio Cespuglio is a lanky and self-assured man in his forties, being one of the youngest ministers in Chiavan history (attained through numerous illegal dealings). Today, standing inside the cramped hangar, his graying and receding hair makes him look a decade older. Instead of his typical designer suit, he is wearing hoodie and jeans. Cespuglio's hair is also uncombed; he must have rushed out here.

"Oh boy, glad I went vegetarian." Cespuglio snickers. "I knew something was off with that Kuso guy, and now I know where you Crogiolo folks dispose the bodies."

"You should go through with it too, Koundouros." He adds, nodding to Lucia. "Meat here is poison."

While Cespuglio is watching TV with the syndicate members, his personal guards stand watch just out of earshot, but well within sight. These guards are armed, and responsible for searching every syndicate member when they arrived earlier, making sure none of them are hiding recording devices. One of them approaches when Cespuglio switches the TV off, and they exchange a gesture. Outside, on the runway, a plane is being powered up.

"I have to go now, so here's the deal." Cespuglio goes to a nearby cabinet, digs out a bottle of vodka and pours himself a generous shot. "I talked to Federica yesterday, they're moving her to house arrest before the trial. She wants me to tell you that the traitor's one of you, actually, probably two of you, in this room."

Cespuglio downs the vodka in one gulp; he shakes his head. "Strong stuff, maybe I should go with tea in the morning. I think you figured that one out better than me, Ms. Saigyo."

"You know," something beeps and Cespuglio checks his phone, "my daughter follows you on Instagram, Alice; good thing I moved her out of country."

"Anyway, I'm leaving too. That new police chief's starting a witch hunt. Don't even think about going after me; I still have enough resources to take you down with me."

"Thanks for the saving on my taxes, Leo. And thanks for getting me that painting, Vinnie. I can't take it with me, so I've sent it back to you." Cespuglio leaves the vodka aside. He zips hoodie up. "Oh, and Hayford, I donated to the medical college last month; you may want to mention me in your application, or not."

"I hope you people can sort this out." Cespuglio signals his guards for departure. "And whoever sold your friends out, I hope you get a kick out of playing hero."

[Zoey Boey]

Reika Saigyo

Reika wasn't a cannibal. How Kuso could betray their trust like that, Reika wasn't sure. But that didn't mean Reika wasn't prepared to eat everyone at this table alive. One of them was an even greater traitor than Kuso. Jane was in prison. She was investigating someone's homestead herself, which indicated she has special knowledge over the other members of the council that would have made her research far more fruitful and certain than anyone else's.

"This cannot continue any longer. We must disembowel my enemies here for all to see!" Clearly impassioned, Reika stood out of her seat, her chair scraping along the floor and almost falling over. Gritting her teeth, the woman in blue sat back down and once again took a sip of her tea.

Reika leaned forward, her voice changing tone to one of emotionlessness. Her words became hard to read. "We have to act fast. In order to be sure the person we choose isn't the mole, we must swiftly and terribly dismantle them and their organization. Then we will know the truth. Since some of you seem to be having cold feet, I will take the lead myself."

Reika snapped toward Alice, continuing her tirade. "I think we all know who the perpetrator is."

"Even if you are not the traitor, your being out of the way will narrow down the list of suspects. Cede everything you have over to the council, or we will see fit to destroy you." Reika's truth was spoken. Adjusting her crop top, she leaned back and stared down the woman she was accusing.

[Red7VII]

"Well." Leo was visibly cantankerous. They were falling, failing. Failure was not acceptable and, yet, he felt nearly powerless to solve the problem. The organization was crumbling. It had to stop. "Alright. Let's hit this systematically. Why Jane?" He scanned the others' faces in the hangar. "Did she pose a threat to the rat or was she just an easy target?"

Cespuglio's words echoed in his mind. 'She wants me to tell you that the traitor's one of you, actually, probably two of you, in this room.' Federica was not one to speculate. If she said there were probably two rats, then there were two rats. They were likely working together, agreeing with eachother, allied.

"Federica implied there are two rats. I've not seen anyone here vouch for any other person. Except for Vinnie and Reika. The latter making no qualms about her aspirations to take over while the former has pledged fealty." Leo paused to let the notion sink in. Any accurate accusations would make him a target. He swallowed hard on that thought. If they sorted one out, the other could still have their vengeance. "If there are two, Reika and Vinnie seem like the most logically linked pair to look at."

[Katthaj]

Vinnie Esposito

---

he waited for Leo to finish his thought before talking."I completely understand where you are coming from Leo but I find it more likely that these two filthy rats wouldn't be talking to each other in an open setting, I highly doubt that Reika is the rat so let's just keep her out of this alright?!" Vinnie said putting a lot of weight into the last words of that sentence. "But you have kept clear of making anyone suspicious of you by saying we should all calm down and not vote. But now that we have it confirmed that there were two of them you were quite quick to point your finger at the two people who would threaten someone that is a rat." he said almost fuming from being called a rat

He decided to calm himself and sit down for a bit and think of how he would protect Reika in case the other members started gunning for their heads. He knows that lashing out wasn't the best way to squash the notion that he was an undercover copper but he was trying to protect Reika here, not himself, he could manage.

[Liv]

Lucia Koundouros

"I...might be sick."

Lucia rubbed the back of her neck as she started pacing back and forth. She dawned on the fact that she'd given in to temptation rather easily, and the thought alone was infuriating her to the point of self-hatred. Kuso wasn't innocent, but she was the one who took the bite.

The woman then took a few deep breaths to calm herself down, watching as Cespuglio addressed them before he took his leave. Then the accusations started flying around. Three other members had spoken up, and Lucia felt the need to go off what Leo had previously mentioned, if at the least to keep the flashbacks out of her head.

"Hold on, let's go back to Jane for a moment. What would she have on any one of us? We should start with that and work our way from there. Let's be in agreement with each other, yeah?"